Insell To Participate In NCAA/WBCA 'Mock Selection' Session

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - Middle Tennessee head women's basketball coach Rick Insell will be one of 22 attendees, and one of 20 coaches, at an NCAA/WBCA "Mock" Selection Session Thursday and Friday at the NCAA office in Indianapolis, Ind.

Each attendee will act as a member of the NCAA Tournament selection committee, using technology and tools available to the committee. They will be responsible for selecting, seeding, bracketing and assigning teams to sites in the "mock" exercise. Each participant will be provided team information in advance in order to assist with the preparation.

"It is an honor for us at Middle Tennessee and myself to be included in that group of coaches," Insell said. "That alone excited me when I looked to see who was invited and accepted. We have been rubbing shoulders all summer recruiting and now we get to go through the process as far as the tournaments are concerned.

"As far as what we can do, it is going to be interesting to get up there and see what the committee has on its mind as far as the process and how they go about it. It will be good to see what the strategies are and how they place teams.

"I think looking at the schools that are going to be there, if there was one program that would have something at stake, it would be us more than some of the others that have been in the top 10 or top 25 in the country. They might be looked at a little different than a Middle Tennessee.

"I am just going to observe the process and attitudes of everyone there, and how they go about all of it. Hopefully, I will be able to let them know how we feel. I'm excited about getting up there."

Insell has led the Blue Raiders to three NCAA Tournament appearances in his four seasons, including this past year as the No. 8 seed in the Berkeley Region. Middle Tennessee faced No. 9 seed Michigan State on the Spartans' home floor in East Lansing, Mich.

MT will enter Insell's fifth season in 2009-10 with all 11 returners and five newcomers following a 2008-09 campaign in which it posted a 28-6 record and won the Sun Belt Conference title.